


Drunk Tank

by Daegaer



Series: Problems in Navigation [14]
Category: Weiß Kreuz
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Assassins & Hitmen, Fights, Friendship, M/M, Psychic Abilities, Slavery, Space Opera
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-17
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2019-08-07 10:07:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16406384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daegaer/pseuds/Daegaer
Summary: Crawford has a legal headache when his engineer gets caught up in a fight.





	Drunk Tank

Crawford was moments away from securing a profitable cargo contract when he tensed, feeling the warning of _danger, disgrace_. He smiled blandly at the factory administrators and tried to ignore the sudden beep from his comm.

"Do you need to attend to that, Lord Captain?"

"No, it can wait," he said.

Schuldig's beeped.

Gods _damn_ it.

He finished the deal in a blur of worry, and got them away after only one polite drink. The moment they were out of sight both he and Schuldig accessed the messages.

"I'm going to kill him," Crawford said evenly, as Schuldig started cursing all the gods, individually and by groups. "He thinks he's the only one who can lose his temper? I'm going to damn well kill him."

Nagi had been arrested for brawling and assault.

 

* * *

 

"I'm the captain of the _Rose_ ," Crawford said, staring down the security officer in the grey-walled detention centre. "I believe you have my engineer in your custody? He had my navigator with him, I'll want him released to me immediately."

"Engineer Naoe Nagi, and the navigator Ran," she said, keying up files on her system. "The navigator is being held under sedation pending psych evaluation – he participated in the assault. He'll need to be certified safe for release."

"He can't be held criminally responsible," Crawford said, tamping his anger down. Nagi was clearly a bad influence on Ran.

"We don't allow dangerous animals loose on the station," she said. "Is Naoe Nagi a minor?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Crawford snapped. "He couldn't be a certified engineer if he wasn't a legal adult. You must be holding his documents."

"He's a very young looking twenty-one," she said sarcastically. "He'll be charged as an adult."

"Let me see the footage of the incident and give me a list of possible claimants," Crawford said. "I'll want to speak to my crewmember then."

"You can use the room across the hall. It's video only; station law doesn't permit sound recording without written permission."

Crawford glared at her, but she didn't seem to be making some sort of joke at his expense. He went and watched the video twice quickly, then more slowly. _You bring my nav to a damn bar?_ he thought in irritation. At least it wasn't the sort of bar he knew Nagi frequented when he really wanted to blow off steam. Ran would probably have expired from horror on the spot. They sat, they drank – he glared at the screen at the sight of Ran with a large glass of wine, like he was Nagi's damn _date_ \- Ran laughed at something Nagi said and then the trouble started. Four locals came up and said something that made Ran hunch his shoulders and stare down at the table. Nagi sat back, looking up calmly and very clearly said _Fuck off_. The locals said something at length to him and he smiled a nasty, mean smile as he replied. A local threw a punch and Nagi came out of the chair, evading the fist in a way that showed he was trained, and slammed an answering blow into the man's throat. After that it was considerably more confused, but Crawford had to admit that the way people got flung around could _almost_ be seen as natural. At least Nagi hadn't actually killed anyone. He sighed at Ran wrestling one of the attackers down and getting a few good punches in. _I'm putting you on a damn leash_ he thought.

He went back to the desk.

"I'll speak to my engineer now, _in confidence_ , so please ensure the sound really is kept off," he said, and followed the officer down to a holding cell.

Nagi stood up as he entered, staring down at his feet. There was a bruise on his cheek and he looked somehow even younger than ever. When the door closed behind the security officer he met Crawford's eyes.

"Evening, Captain."

" _Gods_. What in all the _hells_ , Nagi?"

"I didn't start it."

"Didn't you?" Crawford said, scrolling through the list of persons with possible claims against Nagi. "Assault, bodily harm, damage to property, brawling –"

"We can contest some of those," Nagi said. "I did not throw the first blow."

"How'd you provoke them into starting a physical fight?" Crawford said.

"Oh, one of them made some crack about my assumed proclivities and skills at cock-sucking. I said that actually I preferred getting sucked and he should ask his mother how she thought the evening had gone. I thought he was going to hold it together until I said she hadn't been any good. The old ones are still the most effective, Captain."

" _Why_ did you fight them?" Crawford said.

Nagi looked a little defensive. "They were upsetting Ran. That idiot who tried to hit me started in on him first, asking if it was true that navs were stress relief for a ship's crew. I don't mean to sound insubordinate, Captain –"

"That'd be a first," Crawford muttered.

" – but it gave him some bad memories."

Crawford just looked at him.

"Don't ever say that to Schuldig," he said after a moment.

"No, sir."

"The crew sticks by each other, understand?"

"Yes, sir."

Crawford shook his head and sent the list of charges and claimants to Schuldig to start working on. This was what he got for having gods' damned kids on the crew, he thought. Nagi was still sentimental and weirdly soft-hearted in ways, at least by the fractured standards of their youth. Taking Ran out drinking, acting to protect his honour – it was the act of an overly dramatic teenager. In years to come Nagi would look back at this and laugh.

"I should leave you here overnight," he grumbled. "The legal fees will be coming out of your wages, you hear me?"

"Yes, Captain. Get me out of here, the bunk mattress stinks and the food's shit. It's out of vending machines."

"You don't go drinking with Ran any more, understand? You know he has to be evaluated as safe now, because he fought those morons with you?"

"You should be proud of him, protecting a crewmember."

"Don't push me, Nagi. I'll leave you here."

"Yes, sir."

Crawford heaved a sigh. How Nagi could make that sound so rude was clearly a natural skill. He went over to rap on the door.

"Come on, I'll get you bailed into my custody."

He flashed back on the image of Ran sitting across from Nagi, laughing and sipping wine, and frowned in irritation. Maybe, he thought, it was his gods' damned nav-romancing _engineer_ he should keep on the leash.


End file.
